What do you do with Christmas when you’ve left church—but still love the season?

If you’ve ever wondered how to redeem Christmas without going back to religious performance, this conversation offers permission, language, and ideas for creating a conscious Christmas that actually feels like you.

In this episode of the Unchurching Podcast, Clint and Rachelle talk honestly about how confusing and guilt-laden Christmas can feel after deconstruction: Do you still “make it about Jesus”? What do you do with the nostalgia, the carols, the services, and the pressure to celebrate?

They explore the deeper history of Christmas—from pagan solstice festivals to the surprising lore behind Santa, stockings, and gifts under the tree—and how that history can actually free you from religious obligation. You may be surprised, we were!

They reframe Jesus through an awakened lens: Instead of centering a distant God or a baby “born to die,” they invite you to see Christmas as an inner event—honoring your own awakening, inner guidance, humility, and soul gifts.

They also introduce a playful new “bumper sticker” segment, where they take familiar Christian phrases and "gently" re-interpret them through a lens of consciousness, freedom, and light.

✨ Christmas can be about light within, not religious obligation.
✨ Jesus shows us our own divinity, not our depravity.
✨ You’re allowed to rewrite your traditions in a way that feels true.

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🌀 Unchurching is for the spiritually curious, the deconstructing, and the awakening.

📲 Follow us on Instagram: @unchurchingpodcast

⏱️ Chapters

00:00 – Welcome & the chaos of Clint’s Christmas décor
01:20 – When Christmas feels strange after leaving church
02:45 – Missing old traditions & asking: “What do we do with this now?”
04:30 – Was Christmas ever really about Jesus’ birthday?
06:20 – Solstice, Yule, and the return of the light
09:30 – How the church absorbed existing midwinter traditions
12:40 – A curious rabbit hole: Santa, symbolism, and old shamanic stories
18:30 – Why exploring origins helps release religious guilt
20:10 – The church’s version of Jesus: savior narrative & hierarchy
26:00 – The awakened view of Jesus: mystic, teacher, and breaker of religious rules
31:00 – Presence, compassion, and living what Jesus embodied
38:00 – New segment: Bumper Sticker of the Week
44:20 – Turning familiar phrases into invitations to awaken
47:00 – Where awakening fits with Christmas now
48:00 – The birth of inner light after the dark night
49:20 – The “star,” intuition, and inner guidance
50:30 – The manger, humility, and the human condition
51:20 – Gifts, soul gifts, and what we really bring to each other
52:30 – Making Christmas an inner event instead of a religious obligation
54:20 – Final reflections & a conscious Christmas blessing

In this powerful and deeply vulnerable first video episode, Clint opens up about the past 11 months that completely changed his life — the unraveling of identity, the collapse of the body, and the slow, sacred rebirth that followed.

From full-body spasms and sleepless nights to moments of surrender and spiritual awakening, this is the raw and unfiltered story behind Clint’s physical awakening — what it really looks like when the body becomes the teacher.

Alongside Rachelle, he shares the fear, humor, humility, and transformation that unfolded as his body pulled him into consciousness, breaking through the illusion of control and teaching him what true healing really means.

✨ Awakening through illness — when your body becomes your guide
✨ Releasing trauma stored in the fascia and nervous system
✨ From control and striving to surrender and presence

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🎧 Listen on all platforms → Listen Now
🌀 Unchurching is for the spiritually curious, the deconstructing, and the awakening.

📲 Follow us on Instagram: @unchurchingpodcast
🌐 Learn more or book mentorship: unchurchingpodcast.com

⏱️ Chapters
00:00 – Welcome to Our First Video Episode
01:00 – Why We’re Sharing This Story Now
03:00 – The Impossible Year: 11 Months of Awakening
07:00 – The Night It All Began
10:00 – Spasms, ER Visits & Confusion
14:00 – The Wellness Center & Black Blood Revelation
17:00 – Heavy Metals, Trauma, and the Turning Point
22:00 – When the Body Becomes the Teacher
26:00 – From Startup Burnout to Breakdown
33:00 – Stress, Responsibility & Survival Mode
40:00 – The Gun Moment: When Life Feels Too Heavy
47:00 – Finding Meaning in the Darkness
51:00 – Meeting the Shaman – The Day of Rebirth
56:00 – Learning to Rest, Release, and Receive
01:03:00 – Energy Healing, Self-Talk & Speaking to the Body
01:10:00 – Fascia, Memory & Generational Trauma
01:16:00 – Nervous System Rewiring & Safety
01:23:00 – Healing Without the System: Presence Over Pills
01:29:00 – Grieving the Life You Lost
01:35:00 – Releasing the Old Self & Integrating the New
01:44:00 – Near-Death & the Rebirth Experience
01:52:00 – Lessons from the Edge of Life
01:55:00 – Living From Presence, Not Performance
01:57:00 – Gratitude, Love, and Closing Reflections

In this deeply personal and eye-opening episode, Clint and Rachelle open up about what happens when spiritual awakening takes over the body. From nerve pain and insomnia to emotional waves and physical recalibration, they explore how awakening isn’t just a state of mind — it’s a full-body transformation.

They discuss how trauma lives in the fascia, why the nervous system holds the key to healing, and how to tell the difference between illness and awakening. With honesty, humor, and compassion, they share their lived experience of physical awakening — the confusion, the beauty, and the unshakable trust that the body knows what it’s doing.

✨ Your body isn’t betraying you — it’s leading you home
✨ Pain isn’t punishment — it’s communication
✨ You’re not falling apart — you’re waking up

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🎧 Listen on all platforms → Listen Now
🌀 Unchurching is for the spiritually curious, the deconstructing, and the awakening.

📲 Follow us on Instagram: @unchurchingpodcast
🌐 Learn more or book mentorship: unchurchingpodcast.com

⏱️ Chapters
00:00 – Welcome & Disclaimer
02:30 – The Misunderstanding of Physical Awakening
06:00 – Diagnosed or Awakening?
09:30 – The Emotional Toll & Trusting Intuition
13:00 – Awakening Through the Body
17:00 – Energy, Fascia & the Nervous System
22:00 – Survival Mode & the Fight-or-Flight Trap
28:00 – Childhood Trauma & Emotional Imprints
33:00 – Releasing Stored Pain & Triggers
38:00 – When Old Wounds Resurface
44:00 – Physical Symptoms of Awakening
50:00 – Digestion, Hormones & Recalibration
55:00 – The Nervous System as Messenger
01:00:00 – Speaking to the Body & Rewiring Safety
01:05:00 – Integration & The New Body
01:08:00 – Final Reflections: You’re Not Broken